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Cape Garden Route Tour …. a little different
Just one of many to wet the
appetite…our "Chef" will prepare
any meal to your specifications.
Day 1
Cape Garden Route Tour:
We  depart
Cape Town on our Cape Garden Route Tour towards
the beautiful Wine
Lands and visit
some of the historic estates and villages along
the way. By midday we should arrive in the Franschhoek
valley in the Cape Winelands and our abode for
the night is set high on the slopes amid its own
vineyards and trout-stocked lakes. Its excellent
cuisine will delight the palate when we return
from exploring the many antique shops and other
places of interest.
Day
2 Cape
Garden Route Tour:
Today's scenic trip ends at an exquisite Auberge
in Hermanus where
from June to November we will be able to do some
whale watching - watch the largest mammals on
earth cavort with their young close to the beach.
Hear the wailing tones of the  Whale
Crier's Kelp Horn call the people to see this
awesome sight. Whales and their young come to
rest and play in the bay every year and their
numbers are growing due to the great conservation
efforts of most countries of the world. We can
take a boat trip to view whales and experience
these wonderful creatures at close range. Even
from your bedroom window you may be able to spot
them. A lovely swimming pool will cool us in the
hot summer months and a warm fire in the open
hearth of the comfortable lounge will warm cool
winter evenings. Of course the fare is outstanding
and the wines perfect.
Day
3 Cape
Garden Route Tour:
 Finds
us still in Hermanus and we explore the magnificent
beauty of the surrounding country side, walk amid
the fynbos in the veld and along the beach. Of
course a sight one never tires of. A whale blowing
nearby is always on the menu.
Day
4 Cape
Garden Route Tour:
Another
highlight on our Cape Garden Route Tour is the
visit to one of the oldest sheep farms in the
Cape. The founder Michael van Breda after whom
also the village of Bredasdorp
has been named, chose this site close to the southern-most
point of the continent as his farm. Still today,
200 years later, it remains in the hands of the
same family. We will spend a few days here, wander
around the farm, rest at the shore of its lake
and feel content at such beauty and the tangible
aura of history. The story of the farm is recounted
during the evening meal, which we enjoy in the
company of our host, a young descendant of the
founder.
Day
5
Cape Garden Route Tour:
Still on the farm, we enjoy a hearty breakfast
and then depart for Cape
Agulhas
where the two oceans really meet.
From its unique position, the lonely lighthouse
has sent its never-ending message to ships at
sea for centuries. We stand at the beach and realize,
that between us and the Antarctic Continent there
is nothing but 3000 miles of the most unforgiving
ocean on earth. We
visit some of the many shipwrecks of unwary sailors
of years gone by and the Shipwreck Museum in Bredasdorp
before returning once more to the farm "Zoetendals
Vallei".
Day
6 Cape
Garden Route Tour:
A fairy castle, Fresh Oysters, 1000 lakes, the
sea and the mountains!!!
 All
this in one day. It's incredible but true…
the magnificent road along the coast to George,
Wilderness and
Knysna. We don't
know where to look first and the cameras are whirring
away. At the end of the day we arrive at a medieval-looking
castle that will accommodate us for the night.
Day
7 Cape
Garden Route Tour:
Refreshed and eager to see more of this beautiful
stretch of South Africa,  we
depart after breakfast towards Plettenberg
Bay and the fantastic scenery of the Tsitsikamma
Forest. A brief stop at the Storms
River Bridge, which is considered to be
one of the best engineering feats of the 20th
century, as well as a walk among the century-old
Yellowwood and Milkwood trees towering hundreds
of feet above us, will leave us in awe of man's
and nature's achievements. The road continues
towards Port Elizabeth
and the nearby Addo Elephant
Park, where we find another of those especially
selected gems of accommodations. In anticipation
of the game-drive tomorrow, we discuss our experiences
over a gourmet dinner.
Day 8 Cape
Garden Route Tour:
Addo's Elephants are among the smallest in the
world,  but
demand the same respect as their larger cousins
in the rest of Africa. Of course we will search
for and find a myriad of other creatures at home
in the bush, such as the elusive Nyala, Eland,
Hartebeest and Gnu. Our day is spent in the Park
and we have brought a Picnic-Basket to look after
our physical well-being. Time flies and all too
soon we have to say our good-bys to the "little
giants" of the forest and return to our Lodge
for the evening sundowner, followed by dinner
and a good night's rest.
Day
9 Cape
Garden Route Tour:
We are glad to have a 4 x 4 on our way to Oudtshoorn,
since we are crossing many a steep and sometimes
treacherous mountain pass affording us breathtaking
views of the mountain ranges with exotic names
such as Grootwinterberge,
Baviaanskloofberge,
Kamanassieberge
and Outeniekwaberge,
named during the "Great
Trek", when many Afrikaners left the
Cape to find their own lands in the north. Our
abode for the night welcomes us with the fragrance
of roses and a traditional meal.
Day
10: Cape
Garden Route Tour
Oudtshoorn is
the Ostrich Capital of
the World
and some of the farms boast in excess of a million
birds. We visit one of these and maybe acquire
the odd souvenir here.  For
the daring, there is a chance to participate in
an ostrich race against the elite jockeys of the
farm. But our day still has much to offer and
we continue to the world- renowned Cango
Caves, which are reputed to be the most
extensive and magnificent cave system in the world.
In its main hall, there is room for over 3000
people, whilst other parts demand tribute by forcing
us to bend our backs to reach the next chamber.
After our day's excursion we return to be pampered
with good fare and wine.
Day 11 Cape
Garden Route Tour:
Into the heart of the fruit country leads us our
way.  Near
Ceres we are welcomed
on an old farmhouse, built in 1842 and situated
on thousands of acres of farmland and game conservation
area. On our last day away we are once more treated
to a game drive in open Landrovers, have a chance
to photograph some of the seldom-seen Elands,
Black Wildebeest and the emblem of South Africa,..
the cute Springbok. We have our farewell dinner
and celebrate a wonderful experience.
Day
12 Cape
Garden Route Tour:
Via the West Coast resort of Langebaan
we return to Cape Town and say our farewells.
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